Choice was third on the depth chart behind C.J. Spiller and Fred Jackson, but the sixth-year player from Georgia Tech – who joined the Bills in November 2011 – had seen very little playing time this season. Choice gained 471 yards during his time with the Bills, including a 90-yard performance last year against Cleveland when he stepped in after Spiller and Jackson were both hurt.

With fullback Frank Summers emerging in the last few weeks, it seems as if coach Doug Marrone is confident that the 248-pounder can give the Bills adequate depth at the position should Spiller and/or Jackson get hurt in the final month.

Another player who could be given a look is rookie running back Ronnie Wingo who was on the team’s practice squad earlier this season, and has been on the 53-man roster the past five or six weeks and inactive on game day.

Bills coach Doug Marrone said Wednesday that wide receiver Robert Woods won’t be able to play Sunday when the Bills host the Jets at Ralph Wilson Stadium.

Woods suffered a high ankle sprain against Kansas City and had to sit out the loss in Pittsburgh. Another wide receiver, Stevie Johnson, will be questionable at best for New York. He injured his groin at Pittsburgh, could not finish the game, and did not practice Wednesday.

Strong safety Da’Norris Searcy was also sidelined with a hamstring, but Marrone thinks he’ll be able to work on Thursday.

As for the ticket situation, CEO Russ Brandon said on his weekly appearance on WGR radio in Buffalo that 4,500 tickets remained unsold at the start of business Wednesday. ”We are in an all out sales blitz to sell as many tickets as we possibly can. We had some decent sales movement on tickets. It’s going to be difficult, but we’re going to certainly do everything in our power to get this game sold out.”

Brandon said the team might ask for a blackout extension to Friday. “It depends where we are at the conclusion of today heading into tomorrow,” said Brandon. ”If it presents an opportunity to help us sell the game out we will do that.”

Quarterback EJ Manuel practiced for the first time since his knee injury on Oct. 3, and he believes he’s ready to return to action in Sunday’s game at Pittsburgh against the Steelers.

“It felt pretty good,” he said following Wednesday’s workout. “I was able to get out there with the 1′s for a lot of reps and it felt good. I definitely feel like I can go, I feel confident going into Sunday. I was pushing off on it fine, and running around making plays. I expect to go back in and make plays.”

Coach Doug Marrone was happy to see Manuel back at work, but he said nothing has been decided regarding who will start. Thad Lewis was also back at practice after missing a week with bruised ribs and he could play if Marrone chooses to go that way. However, all signs point to Manuel getting the start.

“There’s a little bit of rust that they’re working through,” Marrone said of the two quarterbacks. “I’m just going to keep it going during the week and we’ll see where we go as far as the starter, but EJ took more reps than Thad.”

Marrone said Manuel didn’t appear to be limited in any way. “He wasn’t limping or anything,” Marrone said. “From the standpoint of being healthy he’s fine, so now we’re just trying to get him back. I know he’s worked extremely hard. For me, I’m happy to see him out there.”

As for rookie wide receivers Marquise Goodwin and Robert Woods, the news wasn’t as cheery. Both missed practice, Woods with an ankle injury and Goodwin with a sore hamstring, both of which were sustained last week against Kansas City. Marrone said he didn’t feel good about Woods’ chances, and he’ll have to evaluate Goodwin later in the week to see how he progresses.

Rookie quarterback EJ Manuel said Monday morning that he has been cleared to return to practice, and it’s his hope that he will be able to start Sunday when the Bills travel to Pittsburgh to take on the Steelers.

“He knows where I’m at, so it’s more so on him,” Manuel said, referring to coach Doug Marrone who ultimately will make the call on whether Manuel will play.

Manuel injured his knee in the Oct. 3 loss to Cleveland and has missed the last four games during which the Bills have gone 1-3. He began to do more extensive work on the field last week, working before and after practice on dropbacks and throwing to receivers. He also had a session on the field inside Ralph Wilson Stadium before Sunday’s loss to Kansas City and said he felt fine.

“Definitely looking forward to getting back to practice, full course, taking as many reps as coach allows me to get and move on from there,” he said. “It’s his decision at the end of the day, so I’m just going to go out there and work hard and get back where I was.”

Manuel was playing like a rookie in the first 4 1/2 games, but there were definitely some flashes that you like to see, especially from a first-round pick. It seems likely that had Manuel been playing right along, the Bills probably wouldn’t be 3-6 at this stage. Thad Lewis and Jeff Tuel have tried their best, but they simply don’t have the physical tools that Manuel has.

Manuel said he has learned his lesson about trying to do too much when he gets outside the pocket, but he’s not going to play scared either.

“That’s just a part of playing football,” Manuel said. “I’m not going to play scared, I’m going to continue to try to get as many yards as I can and at the same time get out of bounds or slide or throw it away, whatever, when I get out of the pocket. When you can, get down; we call it the Peyton Manning rule, if you’re in the pocket, get down as soon as possible. Those veteran guys understand that, they might not be able to take off, so get down and protect the body.”

After not practicing for a third straight day, QB Thad Lewis was listed as doubtful on the Bills injury report Friday. Unless something drastic changes in the condition of his ribs, it’s almost a certainty that he will be inactive for the game against Kansas City.

Coach Doug Marrone said that Lewis may be able to get some throwing in later Friday and perhaps Saturday, and there’s still a chance he could play Sunday, but don’t count on that. If Lewis were a seasoned vet, he might be able to play with no practice during the week, but he’s certainly not that.

As for who will start, as Marrone said earlier in the week, it could be anybody, though the choices are now likely narrowed to Jeff Tuel and Matt Flynn.

Tuel said Friday, “I’ve had more reps this week than any other week. I definitely feel prepared (to start if needed).”

Tuel did more of the work with the first team, and Marrone said on Wednesday that he would feel more comfortable with Tuel because he knows him better and has seen him work in the offense since April. Flynn just joined the team Oct. 14 and this was his first meaningful practice week as he spent the first two weeks learning the offense.

Marrone said that RB C.J. Spiller is probable to play, as is LB Manny Lawson. Both players missed last week’s game in New Orleans.

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For the best and most recent up-to-date coverage of the Buffalo Bills, the Bills Eye blog will be the place to be. Our coverage will be led by beat writer Sal Maiorana, who has covered the Bills full-time since 1990, and he will provide live updates throughout the season from training camp at St. John Fisher College, from practices at One Bills Drive, and from all games home and away. Sports columnist Leo Roth will also add perspective he has gleaned from more than 25 years of covering the team, and staff writers and editors including Steve Bradley, Mark Dwyer, Scott Norris and Todd Clausen will add content whenever news breaks via posts or tweets.